Hon. Jhlnia zimmernlann Opinion HO. V-1193 

County Attorney 

Swisher County Re: Eligibility to vote in 

Tulla, Texas ii elections to convert 

rural high school distrlcts into independent 

Dear Sir: school districts. 

We refer to your request for an opinion of this 

office concerning eligibility to,vote in an electton to 

ccnvert a Pural high school district into an independent 

school district. S .B. 316, Acts 52nd Leg., R S. 1951, ch. 

42, p. 69, codified In Vernon’s Civil Statutes as Art. 

2922&(5) l 

Article 29221(5), supra, provides in part as 

follows: 

‘Section 1. Upon a petition properly 

signed by twenty (20), or a majority, of the 

legally qualified property taxpaying voters 

residing in any rural high school district 

In which there is maintained a first-class 

high school of twelve (12) grades, offering 

sixteen (16) or more credits, the County 

Judge of said county shall issue an order 

calling for an election to be held not less 

than twenty (20) nor more than thirty (30) 

days from the date of filing of said petition, for the purpose of converting the rural 

high school district into an independent 

school district for school purposes. After 

said election is held, the CammIssioners Court 

shall canvass the re,turns thereof as in other 

similar elections, and if the majority of the 

votes cast favor the change from a rural high 

school district into an Independent school district, then said Con&ssioners Court shall enter its order' to that effect and Incorporating 

said independent school district. . . . Thereupon, such ‘independent school district’ shall 

thereafter be regarded as duly incorporated for 

free school purposes only and shall have and is 
. . . 

Hon. Dennis Zlmmermann, page 2 (V-1193) 

hereby vested with al.1 the rights, powers and 

privileges conferred and imposed by the General 

Laws of this State upon independent school districts. 

" 

. . . 

'Sec. 4. All bonds issued by and outstanding against any such rural high school 

district; as a school district, and all obligatlozs, contracts and indebtedness existing 

against the rural high school district, shall 

become the obligations and debts of the lndependent school district at the time of Its 

incorporation; and the said independent school 

district, after same has been Incorporated, 

shall be held to have assumed the discharge 

of all such obligations, contracts and lndebtedness, and the same shall be enforceable and 

collectible from, paid off and discharged by, 

the said Independent school dlstM.ct, as if 

or1ginallg created by it as an independent 

school district; and it shall not be necessary to call an election within tind for such 

district for the purpose of assuming such 

bonds and other indebtedness. . . ." (Emphasis added.) 

In connection with that law, you ask these queations: 

1. Is the election limited to only qualified 

property taxpaying voters? 

2. Who Is to pay for the expenses of holding 

the election? 

It is observed that Article 2922&(5) provides 

that the petition invoking power In a county judge to call 

sucn an incor 

by twenty (20 P 

oration election must be "properly signed 

or a majority, of the legally qualified 

property taxpailng voters residing In any rural high school 

district" designated therein. But the law does not state 

the quallflcatlon of voters who may vote ln a called election. It simply states that "If the majority of votes 

cast favor the change . . . said Conrmlssioners Court shall 

enter its order to that effect." 

A similar situation is apparent in Article 2742j, 

V.C.S., as amended. That law proOides for the incorporation of certain common school districts into independent 
. . 

Ecn. Dennis Zlmmermann, page 3 (V-1193) 

school districts. In an opinion of this office concerning qualified voters under Article 27423, It was held 

that all persons who are qualified voters and who are 

residents of a common school district as designated in 

that law, are entitled to vote In an election held under and for the purpose set out therein, citing Article 

2955 on the matter of qualification. Att'y Gen. Op. 

V-348 (1947). Under that holding, qualified voters were 

not restricted to qualified property taxpaying voters. 

The slmllarity between the provisions and wording of 

Section 1 of Article 2742j and Section 1 of Article 

2922l.(5) is so striking as to make It apy;ear that the 

latter was patterned after the former. 

Unless therefore, the presence of Section 4 

in Article 2922115) which does not appear In Article 

27425, imposes ~ome'restrlction on the qualification of 

voters under Article 29221(5), the holding in Opinion 

V-348 should control the znswer to your first question. 

The purpose of Article 29221(5) is singular. 

It is to provide for the lncorporatloii by election of a 

rural high school district (classified as co!mon under 

Article 2922b, V.C.S.) into an Independent school district. The boundaries of the successor district resulting from such an election favoring the conversion will 

be cotermlnous with those of the former rural high school 

dletrlct. The obligations, bonded and other indebtedness. 

of the original distrfct will become those of the successor 

district to discharge. Section 4 so provides. A school 

district can no more escaue its o~l~i~ations br incoroorntlcn or conversion than it~could by vdissoluti~n. 

Mount Independent School Mat. v. Jackson, 152 S.W.26 -f 00 

lTex.Clv.App. lgql:-error r%?TIndeed, Section 6 of Article 2786b, V.C.S. speclfical3.y provitles a8 follows: 

"Xr. each insts.nce wherein a common 

school district 5~s been or shnll hereafter 

be converted into 8n lndeuendent school dist;c; rdaln each instance wherein a disf ny kind or class has been converted 

into a district of s.ny kind or class the 

'boundaries of said original district and of 

said successor district being Cotermlnous, 

the inflebtedness of said original district 

shallbe ~leld and.considered and is hereby 

declared to be the indebtedness of said 8uccesaor district without the necessity of an 
- . 

Hon. Dennis Zimmerman, page 4 (V-1193) 

election of any character for the assumption 

of such indebtedness, and the duty is hereby 

Imposed on the governing board of such successor district to levy and collect annually 

taxes against all of the property in said dlstrlct, sufficient to pay the interest and to 

pay or provl.de a proport&$nate part of the 

principal thereof. . . . (Emphasis added.) 

Thus, Section 4 of Article 29221 

4 

5) merely expresses the law as set forth in Article 27 6b with respect to the obligations of a school district converted 

without change of boundaries Into another type of school 

district, and makes it c;.early applicable to rural high 

school districts converzteQiato independent school districts. Section 4 states that all bonds outstanding 

against any such rural high school district, as a school 

district shall become the debts of the successor indemchool district. The underscored phrase constitutes a limitation on the assumption of bonded indebtedness under this law, and prohibits the assumption of 

outstanding bonded Indebtedness of elementary districts 

of the rural high school district which had not previously been assumed by the rural high school district, as 

such, under an election as provided in Article 292211 

V.C.S. It appears that Section 4 of Article 29221(51 was 

carefully and successfully framed to avoid violatTon of 

Section 3a of Article VI, Constitution of Texas. Clearly, It is not the purpose of Section 4 or any part of 

Article 29221(F) to authorize therein an election for the 

assumption oT bmded or other indebtedness. 

Since the avowed Intent of Article 29221(s) is 

not to authorize an election for the assumption OT a debt, 

bonded or otherwise, its sole purpose being to provide an 

election for the conversion of a rural high school Bistrict, It is our opinion that all persons who are quallfied voters under Article 2955, V.C.S., and who are residents of the rural high school district are entitled to 

vote in an election held for the purpose set out in Artlcle 2922&(5). See also Art. 2954, V.C.S. 

With respect to your second submitted question, 

Article 2746b, V.C.S., provides In part as follows: 

WAll expenses Incurred In connection 

with or incidental to any school district 

election In connection with the public school 

within such school district shall be paid out 
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Hon. Dennis Zinrmermann, page 5 (V-1193) 

of the available maintenance fund belonging 

to such district . . .' 

See Att'y Gen. +a. O-623 (1939), O-4919 (1942), O-7187 

(1945) * 

It may not be amiss to direct the attention of 

those rural high school districts which contemplate converting or Incorporating into independent school districts 

to the case styled Bigfoot Independent School Dist. v. 

Genard, 116 S.W.28 804 

-3 (1939). 

ffirmed in 133 Tex. 368 129 S.W. 

It heidathat where 

tai, 

after a co&on school 

district has voted a maintenance the district was regularly converted into an independent school district, the 

independent school district could not impose the maintenance tax without having first obtained the approval of the 

property taxpaying voters of the new district, notvithstanding the independent district embraced the Identical territory which formed the common school district. Also see 

Pyote Independent School Diet. v. Dyer, 34 S.W.2d 578 (Tex 

8omm.A~~. 1931) . 

All persons who are qualified voters and 

who are residents of a rural high school district of the designation and descriptlcm set 

out in Senate Bill 316, Acts 52nd Lsg., R.S. 

1951, ch. 42, p. 69 (Art. 29221(5), V.C.S.), 

are entitled to vote in an eleztlon held thereunder for the oonverslan of such a rural high 

school district into an Independent school: dls2955, u'.C.S.; Att'y Gen. 

Under Article 27&b, V.C.S., the expenses 

of such an election shall be paid out of the 

available maintenance fund belonnlne to the 

district. Attig beni opa. 0-623v(1339j, 

o-4919 (lg42), 0-7187 (1946). 

APPROVED: Yours very truly, 

J. C. Davis, Jr. PRICE DANIEL 

County Affairs Mvlslon Attorney General 

Jesse P. Luton, Jr. 

Reviewing Assistant 

Charles D. Mathews 

First Assistant 

CEO:mw 

Chester E. Ollison 

Assistant